Personalisation and interactivity will be the key drivers of mobile TV according to a new report commissioned by Nokia and conducted by Dr Shani Orgad from the London School of Economics. 

 

The report, titled ‘This Box Was Made For Walking’, predicts that the introduction and adoption of mobile TV will ultimately give way to a more personal and private televisual experience than that of traditional broadcast TV. Users will be able to receive content anytime, anywhere, choose what is most relevant to them, and even create and upload their own television content, while content providers and advertisers will be able to tailor their offerings more specifically to the user.

“For mobile TV to become more than just television on the move, it will have to build on existing channels, programmes, and ways of watching television and using the Internet,” said Dr Orgad. “Mobile TV will become a multimedia experience with an emphasis on personalisation, interactivity and user-generated content.”

It is expected that the most popular genres and programmes on mobile TV will be news, entertainment (soaps, reality shows, comedy, animation), sport, music and children’s programmes. Moreover, the content will be tailored with the mobile viewer in mind – shorter and more concise news bulletins, more user interactivity in reality TV shows and game shows, more user-generated content.

Dr Orgad also looked at the impact of mobile TV on the advertising industry. The reports argues that mobile TV advertisers will be able to target their messages to specific users at levels of precision not possible with traditional TV – “and at success rates higher than those of the Internet”.

The report also reveals that advertisers are currently experimenting with five and seven second-long ad spots to be better suited to the ‘snacking culture’ of mobile TV viewing.

Broadcasters are also likely to see a new midday prime time, a conclusion backed up by consumer trials of mobile TV in Europe which revealed heavy usage of mobile TV during the day as well as during the more traditional early morning and late evening prime times.